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Loveland gets $1 million state grant for sewage upgrade

Grant will help city wastewater treatment plant meet new state standards

By Alex Burness Reporter-Herald Staff Writer

Posted:
07/22/2013 04:47:27 PM MDT

Loveland Water and Power announced Friday in a press release that the city's efforts to meet strict new water quality standards will be aided by a $1.08 million state-awarded grant. The grant follows new nutrient-control regulations set in September by Colorado's Water Quality Control Commission, requiring upgrades to the state's largest domestic wastewater treatment plants. The new standards apply to approximately 10 percent of the state's 400-plus municipal wastewater systems, with a total of $14.7 million in grants going to the systems that have the greatest water quality impact. Work performed on Loveland's wastewater system will support the 2015 renewal of the city's permit to discharge treated sewage into the Big Thompson River. Colorado adopted the new standards in response to increased water pollution from nutrients like nitrogen and phosphorous, high levels of which degrade water quality and clarity, promote algae growth, and threaten aquatic life by diminishing dissolved oxygen. Although these nutrients occur naturally, their levels rise in the presence of community sewage, emissions from vehicles and power generation, and the use of fertilizer and pet waste. In a statement released Friday, several Colorado conservation and angling organizations, including High Country Citizens Alliance and Conservation Colorado, applauded Gov.

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Hickenlooper's commitment to protecting water quality and, consequently, statewide business. Water “is vital to growing our crops, supports our world-class trout fishing, and is critical to Colorado's burgeoning beer brewing industry,” the statement read. “We are fortunate through the passage of legislation and the awarding of these grants ... to begin to address our water quality problems.” Alex Burness can be reached at 970-669-5050 ext. 521 or burnessa@reporter-herald.com. Follow him on Twitter @Alex_Burness.

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